Iowa Counties With The Largest Handgun Permit Increases 2010 to 2011

The 29 Iowa counties listed below had the largest increases in handgun permits issued from 2010 to 2011, after a new Iowa law was enacted stating that county sheriffs shall issue permits, except in a narrowly defined set of cases. (For more about that, and a look at law enforcement concern over the state GOP’s expansive new pro-gun laws enacted earlier this year, read the full story here.)

The counties went from issuing 7,289 permits to carry in 2010 to 35,511 permits to carry in 2011, Iowa Department of Public Safety figures show. That is a 387 percent increase.

Keokuk, 0 to 760

Lee, 34 to 1,264 — 3,618 percent increase

Howard, 25 to 367 — 1,368 percent increase

Jefferson, 38 to 506 — 1,232 percent increase

Winneshiek, 43 to 559 — 1,200 percent increase

Dubuque, 126 to 1,610 — 1,178 percent increase

Wapello, 135 to 1,473 — 991 percent increase

Greene, 153 to 1,056 — 590 percent increase

Emmet, 42 to 270 — 543 percent increase

Scott, 684 to 4,182 — 511 percent increase

Washington, 175 to 958 — 447 percent increase

Delaware, 110 to 558 — 407 percent increase

Story, 390 to 1,956 — 402 percent increase

Mahaska, 217 to 1,069 — 393 percent increase

Jasper, 301 to 1,422 — 372 percent increase

Carroll, 225 to 1,025 — 356 percent increase

Johnson, 547 to 2,270 — 315 percent increase

Clayton, 147 to 581 — 295 percent increase

Des Moines, 363 to 1,393 — 284 percent increase

Chickasaw, 107 to 408 — 281 percent increase

Jackson, 210 to 797 — 280 percent increase

Linn, 1,433 to 5,298 — 270 percent increase

Fayette, 169 to 600 — 255 percent increase

Tama, 256 to 876 — 342 percent increase

Cherokee, 227 to 762 — 236 percent increase

Crawford, 210 to 675 — 221 percent increase

Davis, 194 to 605 — 212 percent increase

Henry, 287 to 887 — 209 percent increase

Clinton, 441 to 1,324 — 200 percent increase

To see gun permit data from your county, click on the map below for statistics on the number of permits issued each year from 2001 to 2016:

This story was produced by the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism-IowaWatch.org, a nonprofit, online news website that collaborates with Iowa news organizations to produce explanatory and investigative reporting.